Let’s check out the three price tiers for the Seattle area, as measured by Case-Shiller. Remember, Case-Shiller’s “Seattle” data is based on single-family home repeat sales in King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties.
Note that the tiers are determined by sale volume. In other words, 1/3 of all sales fall into each tier. For more details on the tier methodologies, hit the full methodology pdf. Here are the current tier breakpoints:
- Low Tier: < $241,598 (down 1.6%)
- Mid Tier: $241,598 – $389,532
- Hi Tier: > $389,532 (down 0.8%)
First up is the straight graph of the index from January 2000 through September 2011.
Here’s a zoom-in, showing just the last year:
All three tiers took a tumble in September, with the middle tier leading the pack. The low tier fell 0.9% MOM, the middle tier dropped 2.1%, and the high tier lost 0.7%.
Here’s a chart of the year-over-year change in the index from January 2003 through September 2011.
Despite continually hitting new lows, the low tier is showing slight improvement in the derivative. Meanwhile, the middle and high tiers both fell. Here’s where the tiers sit YOY as of September – Low: -12.8%, Med: -8.9%, Hi: -4.8%.
Lastly, here’s a decline-from-peak graph like the one posted yesterday, but looking only at the Seattle tiers.
Current standing is 39.5% off peak for the low tier, 32.4% off peak for the middle tier, and 26.4% off peak for the high tier. Only the low tier is currently at a post-peak low point.
(Home Price Indices, Standard & Poor’s, 11.29.2011)